


keepsake

by Musta_aurinko



Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: Accidental Marriage, Fluff, M/M, Post-Canon, too fluffy for sanity
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-07
Updated: 2020-04-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:21:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,941
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23521471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Musta_aurinko/pseuds/Musta_aurinko
Summary: An attic full of old items take Hakuryuu and Judar back to a time they didn't live.
Relationships: Judal | Judar/Ren Hakuryuu
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	keepsake

**Author's Note:**

> i'm back on my fluffy bullshit
> 
> also red robes = wedding robes

It was a sunny and warm day in the middle of the fields in the Far East. Having just worked on the yard of the small countryside house, Hakuryuu had gone back indoors to wash his mold covered hands. Judar was laying on the plain pillow pile excuse of a sofa, half awake and half asleep. Hakuryuu sat down on a chair, cushioned with a turquoise pillow. He didn’t have anything to do before dinnertime, and now as he sat there, he looked down at Judar’s drooling face and then around the room they were in. It was a small building, with one bigger room as the living room and kitchen, two tiny side rooms, and an attic. In comparison to the vast estate of the home he had lived in his entire life, it was very different in its humble but calming atmosphere. 

The daylight shone in through the windows, but the house still felt dim: the dark brown, reddish colour of the walls sucked in light and the curtains of that same turquoise colour left shadows in the room. The curtains were new, Hakuryuu knew one of the women had come to hang them around two weeks ago. The house wasn’t in use most of the time as it was more of a summer holiday place of relaxation, a little bit away from the proper houses around there. Hakuryuu found it relaxing too; having a simple routine of cooking and working on the garden felt so peaceful after months of hectic work and stressing out over things. It had taken _Kouen_ to approach Hakuryuu and point out how burnt out he was for Hakuryuu to finally admit it to himself. Not that Judar hadn’t whined about it before (“I told you so!!”). 

Speaking of Judar. Hakuryuu could sense that he was being watched and turned to look at the only other person within kilometers of their location. Judar had opened one of his eyes just a little bit as he laid there on his right side, a piercing but familiar red iris focused on Hakuryuu. His bangs fell in a mess over his forehead as he pushed them aside lazily while turning a bit to see Hakuryuu better. 

“You done already?” Judar asked, voice quiet from grogginess. 

“Yes. Nothing really to do until dinner”, Hakuryuu said, relaxing on the chair. 

Judar hmm’d before sitting up in one swift move and declaring: “In that case!” He stood up on the soft carpet, recharged and suddenly full of energy. “Come see what I found!” 

Judar took a few floating steps towards the ladder that took to the attic above the room and Hakuryuu, with nothing better to do, indulged him and climbed up after Judar flew there. As soon as Hakuryuu was high enough to peek into the room, he could see that it was surprisingly clean for an attic. The sides were full on boxes, chests and cabinets which all stored the most random of items. 

“Just look at some of this stuff”, Judar said and opened a chest full of tools that had become outdated long before their births. With fascination, Hakuryuu picked some of them up with the most careful of grips as if the tools would crumble to dust if he handled them too harshly. 

“Imagine storing some ancient hoes like they were family treasures”, Judar commented as he saw Hakuryuu inspect the contents of the box further. 

“Kouen would have a field day”, Hakuryuu said, deep in thought as he picked up old arrowheads. 

“Yeah I bet he would”, Judar said, unimpressed, having wanted to go through all of the boxes together instead of stopping to marvel at the contents of the first one. “You nerds.” 

Hakuryuu snorted, looking at Judar pointedly but taking the hint and closing the lid. 

“Kouen doesn’t have these privileges! It’s my family’s attic”, Judar announced as he stepped backwards, deeper into the space. Hakuryuu stood up from where he was squatting and started looking around. There were linens, carpets and furniture with beautiful and detailed decorations, embroidery and carvings. On one wall, there were logs, tent cloth and furs. 

“People around here have also lived in tents?” Hakuryuu asked, not knowing much about what the region had looked like in the past. 

“How should I know?” Judar replied very unhelpfully. 

In a small pile, there was a low table and on top of it, a small cradle. Every stage of a human’s life could be found in a condensed form on the attic, from the cradle to toys to tools. There were linens women prepared for their married life, parts of structures people built to live in, the cycles of a community so well represented. Inside the cradle, there was a smaller chest which Hakuryuu picked up, but just as he was about to open it, he heard Judar cracking up on the other side of the room. 

“Look at this sorry excuse of a robe”, Judar laughed and pulled out an old, old robe. It, like the other clothes in the chest, were from a time period before the Kou Empire ruled over those lands. Hakuryuu walked over to see them better, the small chest still in his hand. 

“These are the ugliest fucking things I’ve ever seen”, Judar commented as well as he could from his laughter. Under Kou, everyone’s clothing was decided by the rulers: brown robes for slaves, green ones for commoners, and white for nobles. Any deviation of this was only accepted during celebrations. These clothes were of a bit of a different style and diverse in colours. Hakuryuu didn’t know why he had expected that the old clothes had been destroyed by their owners when the new law came in place. As much as Judar laughed at the clothes that apparently didn’t fit the current fashion trends, Hakuryuu saw some value in the preserving of such pieces of history. If for no other reason, then the fact that sitting down for an afternoon like this to inspect them was quite enjoyable. 

“Does it suit me?” Judar asked as he picked up a bright-coloured hat and set in on his head. 

“Reminds me a bit of Kouha”, Hakuryuu made a neutral observation, but based on Judar expression it was almost an insult to him. He put the hat down. 

“What is that?” Judar pointed at the chest that Hakuryuu was still holding, and Hakuryuu lifted it in front of him and opened it. It was full of beautiful jewellery you wouldn’t believe anyone around there could afford. Sparkling silver and golden colours (was it real gold?) decorated necklaces and bands with pearls and stones. They were not like jewellery of real jewels and jade, but still pretty to look at. Judar lifted one necklace up. 

“Just sell these and lift yourself from poverty, what’s the point of keeping them in some dusty attic”, he wondered, but Hakuryuu felt like he could understand. 

“At some point, these have been very important items to their first owners. And they have been passed down for generations, from mother to daughter and so on. They have emotional value”, he explained, but as he turned to look at Judar, the other was putting a third necklace around his neck to see how it looked. The unimpressed Hakuryuu got a beautiful hairpin stuck to his hair. 

After having admired these for a short moment, Judar moved on to the next box. “Oh-ho!” he exclaimed as soon as he saw what was in it. “Here’s a whole box full of your sentimentality!” And when Hakuryuu peeked inside, he could only see red fabrics. One after another there were stunning red robes, decorated with the most beautiful patterns in golden yarn. Dragons and phoenixes and flowers... Hakuryuu reached in to run his fingers across the smooth fabric. 

“How many generations do these cover...?” he said in wonder as he picked up a robe and held it in front of him to see it better. 

“As if you hadn’t seen fancier clothes before”, Judar downplayed the discovery from somewhere to Hakuryuu’s left, but Hakuryuu didn’t turn to him. 

“I guess it’s just heart-warming to find this kind of continuity in a place you’d least expect”, Hakuryuu thought of it. “It’s not about the items themselves but what they imply. Not everyone can pass these to their descendants with everything that has happened here...” 

Rustling of clothes to Hakuryuu’s left. A clinking of the necklaces. 

Hakuryuu turned back to the box and put the robe in. Now that he looked at the jewellery, it made more sense. If you combined the two, it would certainly look beautiful... Perfectly fitting for the day when you could look your loved one in the eyes and promise to never let go, vow to stand as partners to hold each other steady. 

Assuming arranged marriage wasn’t the custom around these parts. 

“You really wanted to have that, didn’t you?” 

Without even noticing it, Hakuryuu had been staring at the two chests for a moment in silence, deep in thought. Judar hadn’t said anything either or moved to a new box. Or to Hakuryuu’s field of vision at all. 

“Comb your hair, drape yourself in red, complete challenges to reach your wife-to-be and pour tea to your sister. Did you dream about such a day, to set up your own chest to pass down to your progeny?” 

Before Hakuryuu got to begin his protest, he actually, finally turned to Judar. And any words he might have had in his mind died that instant. Judar was standing some meters away, looking at himself in a long mirror that was leaning against a wall, having put on one of the red robes from the box. It fit him well; there was no clothing that would work better with the colour of his eyes. 

Looking at the clothes and jewellery in their boxes had awoken a powerful feeling in Hakuryuu, but if he had been wondering what it must feel like to see your loved one it such a get-up, he had to wonder no longer. After a pause, he said: “I’d rather put mine in _this_ chest.” 

Judar turned his head to look at Hakuryuu, seemingly a bit surprised at Hakuryuu’s bold implications. Hakuryuu stood up from where he had been kneeling next to the boxes and walked up to Judar. 

“Isn’t that a bit unconventional since we are both--” 

“Judar-” 

“--from different classes. O Highness”, Judar said with fake dramatics. 

Hakuryuu sighed. “You are the most spoiled peasant-born person in the Empire”, he chuckled. “No, the most spoiled person, period.” 

“Take it or leave it”, Judar grinned. 

“Okay”, Hakuryuu said. He looked Judar in the eyes: “Then we’ll--” 

“Wait!” Judar interrupted him, went to the chest with the red robes, grabbed one and put it around Hakuryuu’s shoulders. Then he kept pulling it so Hakuryuu slid his arms into the sleeves and Judar put it on place. 

“Continue.” 

Hakuryuu took the hold of Judar’s hands. “Partners... As one, I would stand as a steady support...” 

“Then I won’t let go.” 

Maybe Hakuryuu would’ve wanted to say something more, something fancier or more meaningful, but it wasn’t really necessary as Judar always knew what he felt even without voicing it out loud. There were no guests, gifts, challenges, red carpets, music or firecrackers, but that didn’t matter much either; it was them against the rest of the world that had started this whole thing in the first place. And besides, after all the kisses were over it was dinnertime, so they had no choice but to go straight to the banquet part.


End file.
